Brussels - New York: Europe and the Arabs
The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights expressed deep shock at reports of brutal killings of civilians in the village of Wad Al Noura in Gezira State in Sudan, which was attacked on Wednesday by the Rapid Support Forces.
Volker Türk said in a statement issued on Friday that the information collected by his office indicates that the Rapid Support Forces used weapons with wide-area effects, including artillery shells, during the attack.
He pointed out that clashes were also reported to have broken out between the Rapid Support Forces and individuals mobilized by the Sudanese Armed Forces.
Türk said that these killings "add to my already significant concerns about the adherence of those involved in the fighting to the principles of distinction, proportionality and precaution under international humanitarian law. They also raise questions about the continued arming of local groups in the context of ongoing hostilities."
He called on the Rapid Support Forces and all concerned parties to conduct a rapid independent investigation in line with their obligations under international law, stressing that those responsible for unlawful killings must be held accountable.
At the conclusion of his statement, he asked, “How many additional Sudanese civilians must die before the parties to the conflict stop fighting?”
In the same regard, a European statement issued in Brussels said: “The European Union is horrified by credible reports of another senseless massacre of more than 100 unarmed villagers committed by the Rapid Support Forces in Wad Al Noura, Al Jazeera State, Sudan.”
The European Union, in cooperation with the High Commissioner for Human Rights and the independent United Nations expert on the human rights situation in Sudan, is working extensively to monitor and document human rights violations committed by the belligerents since the beginning of the conflict, which has lasted more than a year, to ensure that the perpetrators of these crimes are fully held accountable.
Once again, the European Union calls for an immediate cessation of hostilities and for unhindered access for humanitarian workers. International law must be respected and civilians protected.